Congratulations to team Fitz-Perfect! Captained by Barbara Fitzhugh. They went undefeated in the 40 & over 4.5 state tournament in Monroe! The team looks forward to representing New Orleans at the end of July in the sectional tournament in Mobile!

About this time two years ago tennis players arrived at 9am to play Free tennis at Atkinson-Stern, 4025 South Saratoga Street in uptown New Orleans. Thanks to Pros Greg Harkins (now head tennis coach at Nicholls State) and Randy Allen for working with NORDC to start this program. It continues to be successful– supported by Head Pro Jonathan Ames, Randy Allen, and NORDC.

Part of this success is the results of the format. Seniors (we don’t card) arrive between 9-11am and just sign in and join in. Don’t have to make a reservation, form a foursome, find subs! Plus, locals have a chance to meet GREAT people from all walks of life, gender, skill levels, visitors, and new residents to New Orleans.

While recently watching on TC the Italian Open in Rome, I was reminded of a 2011 Interview with Metairie native Linda Tuero, Champion of the 1972 Italian Open.

Linda Tuero

BC. Where were you born?

LT. Metairie, Louisiana

Q. How old were you when you started playing tennis? Who were the persons who inspired you to love the game of tennis?

A. I started playing tennis at 10. My parents made it clear that they wanted me to choose a sport and then focus on that sport. Athletes were in my family. My grandfather Oscar Tuero was a professional baseball player for the St. Louis Cardinals and other teams. He was also inducted into the Cuban Hall of Fame in 2004. My father was an All Star baseball player in Texas as well as a fine tennis player. My uncle Jack Tuero was a top U.S. tennis player. Tennis seemed to be the natural choice. My father was a Captain for Delta Airlines and arranged his flight schedule to practice with me as much as possible. Without him doing this, I’m convinced my career wouldn’t have gone too far. We would count strokes to see how many balls we could hit in a row and who would miss first. I was 10 and not happy when I missed first, which was of course, all the time. My competitive spirit was already there.

Q. Where did you attend high school? Did you participate in other sports other than tennis?

A. I attended St. Martin’s Episcopal School in Metairie, Louisiana. There was no time to participate in other sports or activities. My parents always stressed grades first. If I didn’t make the honor roll there would be no tennis.

Q. What were the first tennis matches you participated in? How old were you?

A. I entered my first tournament six months after I started playing. This was the New Orleans Recreational Department (NORD) New Orleans City Championships. I won and at that point the idea of “working hard at one sport” made sense. It was then that I decided that I wanted to be the top player in the country.

By July 1964, 3 ½ years later, I won the USLTA National Girls 14 and Under Singles Championships. By the time I graduated from St. Martin’s School I had won six national tennis titles.

Q. Please name a few of you career “highlights” -Were you a member of the Tulane Men’s team?

A. While a member of the Tulane tennis team, I played the women’s professional tennis circuit but to continue as a member of the team I was required to keep my amateur status.

The highlights would be:

Winning the 1972 Italian Open Singles in Rome

Winning the 1970 U.S. Open Clay Court Singles with a semi-final victory over Nancy Richey, then considered the top woman clay court player in the world. In 1971 I was runner- up to Billy Jean King.

In 1971 I reached the quarterfinals of the French Open

In 1969 my World Ranking for Women Under 21 was #1

In 1972 my World Ranking for Women was #10

Other highlights were playing on the United States Federation Cup teams in 1972 and 1973, where I served as Captain in 1973 (a competition between world countries); and playing on the Wightman Cup teams in 1972 and 1973 (United States vs. Great Britain). Chris Evert was also on this team. To read the compete interview, click Read More below:

For the first time ever, American junior players will be able to show off their tennis skills in front of scouts from several college tennis programs throughout the country, as USTA Player Development hosts the inaugural USTA All-American College Combine.

The USTA All-American College Combine scouting event is designed to give U.S. junior players exposure, knowledge and data to help in their college recruitment. The event will be held

June 14-16 at the USTA

National Campus at Lake Nona in Orlando, Fla.

During the three-day event, the athletes will engage in a number of on- and off-court evaluations, including tournament match play in front of college tennis coaches. The tournament will be considered a Tennis Recruiting “National Showcase,” so results will count toward each player’s Universal Tennis Rating, and the tournament winners will receive a main-draw wild card into a USTA Pro Circuit $15,000 event.

Led by USTA Player Development staff and Dr. Mark Kovacs, data will be collected and a report will be created for each participant. Players from the Team USA National Junior Team will participate in the event.

American boys and girls, ages 13-18, are eligible to participate in the combine and will be evaluated on their tennis skills, including serve speed, serve accuracy and ground-stroke accuracy, as well as fitness testing and a psychological self-assessment. The cost is $349.

The USTA All-American College Combine is the latest initiative through which the USTA aims to help American juniors maximize their exposure as they work to earn college scholarships. The USTA also provides exclusive opportunities for American collegians to earn pro wild cards through collegiate competition, compete on the USTA Collegiate National Team, earn grants for playing in professional tournaments and enroll in Professional Tennis Management programs at select colleges.

We are happy to announce the dates for the fourth annual New Orleans Tennis Fest on August 3-6, 2017 at the University Tennis Center in New Orleans

Our 2016 tournament was the #1 tournament in the Southern Section of the USTA (LA, MS, AL, GA, KY, Ark, TN, NC, SC) and the #19 tournament in the Nation with just under 400 players. We are happy to announce the dates for the fourth annual New Orleans Tennis Fest on August 3-6, 2017 at the University of New Orleans Tennis Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.

This is a PRIZE MONEY TOURNAMENT for all Men’s and Ladies’ Open Divisions (Singles, Doubles, and Mixed) and this year we are announcing the addition of Men’s 30’s, 40’s, 50’s, and 60’s Open Singles and Doubles; these divisions will all pay prize money totaling $25,000. (All prize money subject to final participation numbers.) We also offer the full range of NTRP Divisions for Men’s and Ladies’ Singles and Doubles from 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, and 5.0 as well as Mixed Doubles Divisions for 6.0, 7.0, 8.0 and 9.0.

We have a limited number of host families who can house players from out-of-town; please contact me directly for more information.

If you are interested in being a sponsor for this year’s tournament, please contact me directly for more information including our tournament/sponsor brochure; events of this nature are expensive to produce, especially when you add in that we are a small, volunteer non-profit

Trey Luby

Tournament Director

Advantage NOLA Tennis Association (“ANTA”)

ANTA is an IRS-approved 501c3 organization

NOMATA FUN DAY!!

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

On Sunday, June 25th, NOMATA will sponsor a Fun Day for all league players (may play with a friend) in the metropolitan area. The Fun Day will be held at the City Park Tennis Center from 8 in the morning until 6 that evening and will be cost free. It is our way of saying thank you for all the support that you have given us over the years.

Please come out, meet old friends and make new ones. Enjoy the fellowship,food, tennis and other festivities. If you have a friend that may be interested in becoming a tennis player, invite

them. We will have information about the Tennis Apprentice Program there for them.

All play will be doubles (women, mixed and men), and will be divided into NTRP levels

5.0, 6.0, 7.0, 8.0 and 9.0. Doubles teams having a NTRP level between the ones listed will

play in the level above. Each match will begin on the hour and will be of one hour duration. Scores will not be recorded because on that day, we are all winners. We will even provide balls for each match.

On Friday, June 23rd and Saturday, June 24th between 8 and 5, you may call 504-858-7762 and reserve a one hour time slot. Only one member of the team should call to make reservations. If you do not have a partner to play with, call the same number and we will try to match you up with a partner of like caliber. If you had rather, just show up, and we can sign you up for an available court. You can play all day, but can only have one hour time slot reserved at any one time. If the phone line is busy, please try again, as there may be others trying to make a reservation.

Poboys and Gatorade will be provided between 11 AM and 2 PM in the conference

room in the club house. They will be made fresh with ham or turkey, and your choices of

mayonnaise, mustard, cheese,lettuce, and tomato. Chips and cookies will also be provided.

Tennis Apprentice has been the most successful adult tennis program in the South! This is a great opportunity to be introduced to tennis or to get back into the game. It is fun, informative, and will prepare beginner adults to progress into league play.

INCLUDED For $70.00 ( Retail $450.00):
*USTA Membership
*4 Nights of Lessons with Certified Tennis Professional
*1 Player Party
*1 HEAD Tennis Racquet